The measurement of a father's love, moments and days

In this column for Father’s Day 2005, the first since my father had died in October 2004, I wrote these words:

“What I will most recall of that life-changing day when this 'Daddy’s Girl' lost her dad, is that I hadn’t really lost my dad at all. I have a lifetime of memories and lessons learned, of feeling loved every day of my life.”

Two decades later, this is still a melancholy holiday for me. My friend, Makayla Desjarlais, also a daddy’s girl, is facing her first Father’s Day without her dad, Booy. Makayla is the youngest of five children born to Booy and Marilyn Dejarlais.

I’ve known the family for decades and they really are special. I liked Booy a lot. I’m always drawn to positive people with a sense of humor. Even though he suffered through serious health problems for years, he exuded an appreciation for his family and his life. He died in December.

In May, Booy’s baby girl, Makayla, admittedly not a tattoo aficionado, sat down in a tattoo parlor for a simple design. Short and sweet. Thirteen thousand nine hundred thirty-nine days, it reads.

She told me she wanted a visual reminder of her father that honors the life they had together, a reminder to count the blessings of those 13,939 days of being loved, of the laughter and joy.

So here’s to the dads, here and in Heaven, and to their sons and daughters who love them every single day.

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Things to do with Dad:

• Car d’Lane weekend starts off with the Friday night cruise on Sherman Avenue at 6 p.m. where you can see — and hear! — cool classic and vintage cars and hot rods. I love that some of these cars, and their drivers, actually cruised Sherman back in the '60s when I was a teenager! The Car d’Lane car show on Sherman Avenue is Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

• Spirit Lake Lawn Mower Races on Father’s Day Sunday are fun for the whole family, for real. From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on this small town’s charming Maine Street. Trivia: In Spirit Lake (population 2,500), the main streets are named after states and presidents.

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‘Tis the season for those who own RVs and travel trailers to put them to use. As an FYI, in both Post Falls and Coeur d’Alene, any vehicle, including RVs, can only remain parked on a city street for 24 hours.

The bad guys tend to take note when people are loading up, getting ready to head out of town, making your home vulnerable to burglars. If you’re going to be on vacation, you can also contact your local PD so they can make patrol officers aware that the homeowner is out of town.

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"I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

The “Stars and Stripes” was adopted by the Continental Congress as the official American flag June 14, 1777, in the midst of the Revolutionary War.

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Happy Main Street Birthdays today to Deb Wheeler, Berkley Johnson, Kellie Palm, Sandy Green, Gary Schneidmiller, Colin Evans, Tori Daily, Billy Anderson and Erna Rhinehart. Tomorrow, John Imhoff, Nicci Cushman, Vivian Worth and Kamryn Peacock celebrate. Mark Tucker, Meg Andrews, Ann Heinen, Jacklyn Holovka and Dave Siroshton are feeling lucky with Friday the 13th birthdays. Happy star-spangled Flag Day birthdays to Oskar Owens, Lincoln Allred, Christina Hatfield, Tiffany Morrett, Shawna Virgil, Don Morgan, Chris Doyle, Lisa Odenberg, Carmen Myklebust, Brandon Bedwell, Susan Noble and Steve Bruno. On Sunday Sharon Bruno, Jody Piper, Jeffrey Benjamin, John McMurray, Richard Wegner, Taylor Brockhoff, Bob Friske, John Hopper and Joe Hutchinson blow out the candles on Father’s Day. Tim Shepperd, Steve Smalley, Taylor Brockhoff , Bill Dick, Desiree Barclift, Darick Pope, Brenda Gabriel, Frank Bybee, Stephen Parmentier, Shelly Cunnington, Richard Wegner and Rebecca Morelli mark another year Monday. On Tuesday, Raydeane Owens, Jim Foote, Susan Reilly, Vicky Houle, Jesse Bishop, Leigh Cossette, Jennifer Smith and Dana Scholwinski blow out the candles.

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Kerri Rankin Thoreson is a member of the National Society of Newspaper Columnists and the former publisher of the Post Falls Tribune. Main Street appears every Wednesday in The Press and Kerri can be contacted on Facebook or via email [email protected].